1, 2, 3, 3 seconds are very short, and it will pass after a stunned look. But, did you know that there is a dementia patient every 3 seconds in the world.

Currently, there are more than 55 million dementia patients worldwide, of which more than 10 million are located in China. There are about 15.07 million people with dementia in China aged 60 and above, with a prevalence rate of 6.0%. Among them, Alzheimer's disease is 3.9%, vascular dementia is 1.6%, and other dementias are 0.5% [1].

In the long course of fighting against dementia, patients gradually lose memory, cognition, self-care ability, and become hysterical, manic crying, etc. The changes in the patient's temperament and the heavy burden brought by the disease also make family members suffer. .

Both the patient and the family are suffering incomprehensible pain. Today, Xiaojiu will talk about "senile dementia" and how to prevent dementia.

"Alzheimer's Dementia Prediction Atlas" is released, who should be vigilant?

"European Heart Journal" published a research report by Danish scientists. The researchers followed more than 60,000 people for 25 years and found that the six major predictors of Alzheimer's disease are: age, low education level , diabetes, hypertension, smoking and genetic factors.

They also presented for the first time a "dementia risk prediction map," which predicts a person's 10-year risk of developing dementia based on risk factor status.

For example, if a woman has low education, smokes, diabetes, apolipoprotein E genotype 4 (risk factor), and 30 risk genes that are highly associated with dementia, then she is 50-59 years old, 60- The risk of dementia was 6%, 23%, 48%, and 66% in 69, 70-79, and 80-100 years, respectively [2].

Men with the same risk factors have a relatively lower risk of dementia at the same age group, 5 percent, 19 percent, 42 percent, and 60 percent, respectively [2].

The results of this research help to identify high-risk individuals who can benefit from early prevention. Alzheimer's disease takes decades to accumulate. Even high-risk individuals can be prevented as soon as possible in middle age and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Still reduce the risk of dementia.

More terrifying than Alzheimer's, the underappreciated killer - vascular dementia

When it comes to dementia, the first thing that many people think of is Alzheimer's disease. In fact, there is also a "killer" that is often despised by people - vascular dementia. Although it is "unknown", its lethality is not small. So today we're going to focus on that.

Vascular dementia, also known as vascular cognitive impairment, is a dementia syndrome with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases as the main cause, and is the second leading cause of dementia after Alzheimer's disease. Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are very common in life, and the disease is getting younger, so the resulting vascular dementia is also showing a younger trend.

Young and middle-aged patients with hypertension and hyperglycemia often fail to receive timely intervention due to their low level of attention to the disease. Compared with the elderly, young and middle-aged patients have to live with these diseases for a longer time, and other diseases may be complicated by it. It will be more and more severe, so vascular dementia is more scary than Alzheimer's.

Patients with Alzheimer's disease mostly have memory impairment, and less physical function loss during mild to moderate periods. Vascular dementia patients not only have memory loss, but also are mostly accompanied by limb disorders, even paralysis, and have many comorbidities, which seriously affect the ability of daily life.

In addition, due to the similar manifestations of vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease, they are often easily ignored by patients, and even many doctors may miss and misdiagnose.

In fact, most patients with vascular dementia have previous stroke risk factors such as hypertension or atherosclerosis, accompanied by dizziness, vertigo, and limb numbness. Stroke is the "fuse" that induces the outbreak of vascular dementia. Almost 1/4 of the stroke survivors may develop vascular dementia.

Like Alzheimer's disease, the damage caused by vascular dementia to human health is irreversible, but fortunately, vascular dementia can be effectively suppressed or even improved after careful treatment, and the etiology is relatively clear. Targeted early intervention.

To prevent "senile dementia", it is necessary to do these two aspects as soon as possible

With the aging of Chinese society and the high incidence of cerebrovascular disease, it can be predicted that the number of patients with vascular dementia will also increase rapidly, so early intervention for vascular dementia is particularly important.

drug intervention

The first is to prevent stroke and reduce risk factors for stroke, thereby reducing the risk of vascular dementia, including prevention and treatment of diseases such as high blood pressure, high blood lipids, atrial fibrillation or diabetes. Patients should strictly abide by the doctor's advice, insist on taking medicines to effectively control the development of the disease, and not stop or reduce the medicines without authorization.

Chinese medicine believes that cognitive dysfunction, dementia and other brain diseases are nothing more than deficiency of kidney essence, phlegm blocking collaterals, blood stasis block, heart and spleen deficiency. At present, traditional Chinese medicine has certain advantages in the treatment of vascular cognitive dysfunction. Taking Tianma Xingnao Capsule as an example, it is suitable for headache, dizziness, memory loss, insomnia, unresponsiveness, tinnitus, backache and other symptoms. The six herbs in its prescription are commonly used in the treatment of dementia in traditional Chinese medicine. The three medicines are paired to comprehensively improve brain symptoms.

Among them, Gastrodia elata and Dilong remove blood stasis, improve microcirculation and increase cerebral blood flow; Rehmannia glutinosa and Cistanche deserticola can invigorate the kidney, invigorate the kidney and solidify the essence, and enhance immunity; Shichangpu and Polygala radix resolve phlegm, protect nerves and improve memory. The combination of six herbs has the unique effect of invigorating the kidney, resolving phlegm, and removing blood stasis. It is a good way to prevent and treat senile dementia. It can be taken under the guidance of a physician.

improve your lifestyle

In terms of lifestyle, patients can try a simple, light and nutritious Mediterranean-style diet, eat more fresh vegetables and fruits, quit smoking and drinking, control weight, and prevent obesity.

It is necessary to strengthen physical exercise at ordinary times. Appropriate exercise can indeed strengthen blood circulation and improve the symptoms of hypertension. However, it should be noted that exercise should be carried out when the body allows, do not choose too intense exercise, and should start with aerobic exercise such as jogging and walking.

In addition, patients can maintain the habit of continuous learning, use their brains to strengthen memory training, actively participate in social activities, and maintain a cheerful personality and optimistic mood.

> > references: >

> > 1. 15.07 million elderly people in China have dementia. Controlling these 9 major factors can effectively prevent it. Medical Neurology Channel >

> > 2. The Lancet sub-issue of the Xuanwu Hospital team: How common is dementia in the elderly in China? .Academic Jingwei, 2020.12.16 >

> > 3. Dementia should be prevented from middle age! European Heart Journal Study Proposes Predictive Atlas. Chinese Journal of Circulation. 2021-01-05 >

> > 4. Yu Ting. The thinking and experience of traditional Chinese medicine clinical treatment of vascular dementia [J]. Family Psychologist, 2014: 173-173. >